the gang puts on a play

Greetings, Riftwatch!

I am Jacopo Sghenini. I am so so happy for all that you do, it is important work and now we will do important work together. I will find for you the best playwright and the best director and theater, the best costumers and carpenters! Whatever your play needs, Jacopo can provide. But first, I must know everything. I must see your vision before me like my own reflection in my mirror. A handsome vision! You must help me draw this handsome face of your vision.

First, the boring questions! I know it is so gauche to speak of money but we must, a thousand apologies. People always say to me, Jacopo, in the theater, money is not everything. Money cannot be everything where there is art! And they are right, but they are also wrong, I say to them. Because without money, all art would be made of air and that is too boring. So:

● How do you pay? From your pockets, or do you raise money or do you have patrons? You want the best of everything, the best director, the stars, sets and costumes so real they will forget they are in a beautiful theater gazing into the eyes of your handsome vision so handsome like nothing they have seen before and it haunts them always, no other play ever as perfect as yours? Or you want bargains, maybe we find some used sets and costumes, we get every actor that owes Jacopo a favor, we keep your coins.

● When are we wanting the opening? No man in the world can put on a play faster than Jacopo, but fast is not always good, or if it is good it is not cheap, you know? One time, a client asks Jacopo to hire a whole opera company in one week and I do this for them, because I am the best, but the opera, between you and me, it was not the best. Because they wanted fast but not paying, and I am the best but I am not working miracles. I can do this for you if you like, but fast means many of the best, they are cast already in something else. You must either pay to steal the meat off someone's table or you take the scraps.

● Who do you want to love your play? It can be loved by anyone, of course, it will be loved by anyone, and I know many playwrights who are so versatile, so clever, they can write plays that every person loves, from shit-shovelers to princes, jokes for all intellects, they will be quoting your lines in the streets, but this genius it is more expensive and think of the marketing! Who you want to impress, it decides everything, yes, your theater, your director, it is important. So, who do you want buying your tickets? Common people? Or you want to impress the merchants, or maybe the nobles? You want the king to come to your play? Your mamas? Who else? Tell Jacopo the audience and Jacopo will drag them into the theater himself.

● What kind of play do you want? Over many years of my work I have made a list of all the important kinds of plays, just tell what you wish and I will pick the perfect man to write.

● Musical
● Opera
● Comedy (smart)
● Comedy (fun)
● Comedy (sex)
● Romance
● Romance (sex)
● Romance (tears)
● Tragedy (tears)
● Tragedy (bloody)
● History (bloody)
● History (dull)
● Religious (tears)
● Religious (bloody)
● Religious (sex)

Already since I heard about your interest I have been thinking who might be good to write a story about Riftwatch and Starkhaven and who might understand the important story and the important work we have to do and I know these writers, I have worked with them many years and I know how they think and I have to write many questions from them for many years so I write some now that I know they will ask you or if they do not ask you then I, Jacopo ask you because I want to know so I make sure they make your handsome vision just right:

● Who is your main character, Sebastian or Fiona? You can have two, but can you really? You can. Jacopo's writers can do anything. But say one must have one more line than the other, who more?
● Can we say these characters are lovers?
● Maybe a romance they cannot speak, love too late because then they die before it is fulfilled, so tragic!
● Maybe they loved before and now fate reunites at the end? Again, such tragedy!
● Or maybe the opposite of love, hate! Former enemies, together now? They learn to trust and then they die together. Is this tragedy? I do not know but it is DRAMA.
● If none of these what relationship?

● Who is the villain? Corypheus? Can they make up a new villain? A Venatori yes, an evil invader, but a creation of their own minds. This will be very attractive to authors.
● Can the villain be attractive? Or must he be a hideous monster like drawings of Corypheus?
● If he is not hideous (or if he has only now had his hideous nature revealed) maybe the villain and one of the main characters were lovers?

● Sebastian and Fiona these are real people. Should all characters be real people? Do you have a list we need? Or does the author make them up?
● Do you want more elves or just Fiona? How important is Fiona as an efl? If her ears were hidden, keep it a little mysterious, what about that? For Jacopo it is no problem but elf AND mage, that is a lot for some audience, maybe it is easier only mage. But if you want elves Jacopo will fight for elves.

● Do you want the religious imagery? Maybe Sebastian and Fiona made like saints? A little, like they are good and they pray together before the battle, or a lot like many lines of the Chant cleverly put in the script and maybe visions before the battle and maybe at the end they are both burned to death by mage fire, like Our Lady Andraste?

● Or maybe more the images of history, reminders of Marcher victories, Starkhaven leading the Free Marches to glory, maybe invasion is made to look like another Blight, and Sebastian another Corin? Or maybe he is a Champion?

● Speaking of Champions, we must include the Champion of Kirkwall, she is a very popular character, she will bring people to see if she is on the poster. What if the Champion and the Herald? Maybe they greet the heroes in the Fade after their noble death? Maybe they come as visions? Maybe they are not dead and were secretly there to fight and so only now they are dead for real? Maybe Prince Sebastian and the Champion, they were lovers? Or the Champion and Fiona? Strange because they did not meet but perhaps. But we must have the Champion even only a little, so. Consider.

● It is true the Divine did not send the whole Exalted March to Starkhaven, just mages? How to explain this?
● Does brave Sebastian despair thinking in his mind that the Divine has abandoned him before the mages come to raise hopes again in the last moments? Or does he trust in the Most Holy always? He is a man of faith I hear, probably faith is better, but even men of faith they can despair for a scene. For the drama.

● Maybe we have a scene of the Most Holy and Fiona, sending her off to battle. A tearful goodbye between friends? [a note scribbled out appears to've read 'lovers??'] A trusted general ordered to fate uncertain?

● We need a second plot so leads have time to change costumes, so: could be romance of heroic young Riftwatch officers? Or something about the dragon? Sebastian's successor (made up?) sent from the battlefield to protect him? Knight of Starkhaven riding all over the Marches for allies?
● What to say of other Marches? Slamming doors in faces, like cowards? Or do you show all uniting to avenge Starkhaven?

● During the break, what if there is a little comedy scene about Corypheus and the Black Divine? Or the Queen of Nevarra? A little comedy about how they pretend his face is not full of ugly rocks until a bird confuses him for a rock and shits on his face? Or something with a dog?

● How is the ending? Do you want tears, the whole theater weeping into handkerchiefs all the way home? Or cheering for brave heroes, ready to fight? Angry at somebody? Singing your songs in their heads and annoying their husbands with the constant humming? (I do not tell you your vision but if it were up to Jacopo, a musicale or opera, for sure I say. People remember music more than words, music is remembered even if you try to forget.) As soon as I have your vision I start looking for actors so what sort of actors do you want? Do we need to get big stars for the leads? Or maybe one big star just for a little cameo part, maybe a star for the Divine? Do you want a real elf for Fiona?

● I have a cousin who does the most incredible dragon effects, the people love it. He is not cheap, but he is worth it, if we can include a dragon. He can do battles too, if we want battle. Smoke, fire, blood, magic, horses, horse blood, everything. How much battle do you like? How much magic? (Real?)

● What do you want Riftwatch to do in your play? Just march across in the background, like extras? No, you want more. Maybe Riftwatch breaks down the gate, or fights the dragon? Maybe we could borrow griffons for the show?

This is many questions but your play is important work and I, Jacopo, wish to make your play the best play you imagine, with everything you imagine. To make a play means to fight and to suffer and I am here to fight and to suffer and together we make something important. Whatever you want, I make. So please forgive my many questions, it is only so I understand your important vision and feel its blood and I can make others feel how important and be ready to suffer for it. I will wait for your letter and while I wait I think about authors and actors and I talk to my cousin about a dragon discount.

The humble servant of your important vision,

Jacopo Sghenini